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Home » Holidays » halloween

Bloody Brain Caramel and Cinnamon Apple baked doughnuts – donut challenge – Halloween Baking Championship ep 3

Published: October 23, 2015 | Updated: November 15, 2019 | By Ashlee

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These apple pie filled donuts are the perfect fall food – add some red caramel sauce and some toasted walnuts and you now have spooky halloween bloody donuts!

the perfect halloween treat - bloody brain doughnuts. Filled with a cinnamon apple pie mixture, topped with a buttery caramel and a toasted walnut for the brain

So episode 3 is over, PHEW! and I MADE IT! GAH, the finale of Food Networks Halloween Baking Championship only has one episode left, just me and the boys now!

I’m happy the Rudy got a double win, he’s seriously one of my favorite people and he’s SO crazy talented, glad some of it shown through. Personally the speed is really killing me, I’m making silly mistakes, but I’m still having a BLAST!

SO preheat – doughnuts! REALLY? those stupid biscuit doughnuts from last week were horrible, now it’s time to redeem myself, but all of a sudden I realize, I make RAISED doughnuts, not cake doughnuts…

I’ve NEVER made cake doughnuts! Do I have time to make raised? We’ll see! I’d rather stick with what I know, what I am familiar with, than risk something crazy I’ve never tried before.

everyone loves a little blood on halloween right? these bloody brain doughnuts look fantastic and are delicious, caramel, cinnamon and apple doughnut with a toasted walnut brain

I thought Audrey’s Pate a Choux crullers were brilliant, BTW. And I wish I could have tried Rudy’s doughnuts!

On the show I used fast rising yeast, to help cut the rise time down, and I think overal it was fairly successful! If I’d had just 10 more mins of rise time I think that would have made all the difference. That and toasting my walnut brains! GAH.

So the only thing I changed from the show was the blood. On the show I couldn’t think of a good “blood” that would compliment my cinnamon apple doughnuts, so I went with just a corn syrup, red dye and cocoa.

It worked, but was thinner than I wanted, and kept sliding off the walnuts. Using my Caramel Sauce this time was PERFECTION! just thick enough, AND the flavor fit the doughnuts brilliantly!

Caramel Apple Pie Donuts

If you love these apple pie stuffed donuts as much as I do, I’d love a 5 star review. Be sure to share on social media and tag me if you make it @ashleemariecakes! If you want to stay updated on new recipes sign up for my newsletter and join my Facebook Group!

cinnamon apple filling in a delicious raised doughnut and topped with buttery, bloody caramel sauce and toasted walnut brain, the perfect halloween treat - full video tutorial

Here are the other six recipes I made while on Food Network’s Halloween Baking Championship

  • blood orange tart
  • pumpkin graveyard blondies
  • mummy crepe cakes

Charred Blood Orange Tart | Graveyard Pumpkin Blondie | Bloody Mummy Crepe cakes

  • caramel chocolate spider cupcakes - snickers cupcakes
  • peanut butter chocolate brownie ghost
  • monstor donuts - store bought dough

Chocolate Caramel Spider Cupcakes | Chocolate Peanut Butter Ghost Brownie | Store bought monster donuts

Connect with Ashlee Marie Online!

Don’t miss this Halloween ebook – 18 family friendly spooky recipes for you to enjoy, perfect for a fun Halloween party

spooky hallowspooky halloween treats ebookeen-treats
a bloody mess, but a delicious one at that, buttery caramel sauce blood with a toasted walnut brain on top of a cinnamon apple filled raised doughnut - full video tutorial

To watch me make these Bloody Brain Apple Doughnuts play the video in the recipe card. You can find all my cooking show style recipe videos on YouTube, or my short recipe videos on Facebook Watch, or my Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.

bloddy brain cinnamon apple pie filled donuts

Bloody Brain Caramel and Cinnamon Apple baked doughnuts

apple pie filled donuts with a cinnamon glaze and caramel sauce
5 from 2 votes
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes
rise time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 8 minutes
Servings: 12 donuts
Calories: 706kcal
Author: Ashlee Marie
Prevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

Baked Raised Doughnuts

  • 1 C whole milk warmed
  • 1 Tbsp yeast
  • 1 tsp granulated sugar
  • 1/4 C butter
  • 1/2 C granulated sugar
  • 1 lrg egg
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3 C+ all-purpose flour

Apple Pie Filling

  • 4 Tbsp butter
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/3 C granulated sugar
  • 5 Medium apples
  • 3 Tbsp water
  • 1 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 4 tsp cornstarch
  • 2 Tbsp water

Caramel Syrup

  • 3/4 C packed light brown sugar
  • 3/4 C granulated sugar
  • 1/2 C light corn syrup
  • 1/3 C butter
  • 2/3 C heavy whipping cream
  • Super red Gel Color

Glaze

  • 1 1/2 C powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 4 Tbsp whole milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Brain

  • 12 whole Walnuts
  • Salt
US Customary – Metric

Instructions

Dough

  • proof the yeast in the milk with the 1 tsp sugar
  • Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy
  • Add the egg and mix.
  • Add the milk/yeast, the salt and vanilla and mix.
  • Switch to a dough hook and add 2 cups of the flour and mix, then add 1/4 C of flour at a time until the dough gathers around the hook and cleans the side of the bowl. don’t add too much flour
  • Turn out and knead, place in an oiled bowl and let rise 1 hour

Filling

  • peel, core and slice apples, cut into small pieces
  • melt butter, cinnamon, nutmeg and sugar over medium heat
  • stir in apples, 3 Tbsp water and lemon juice
  • cover and cook stirring occasionally 4-6 min until slightly soft
  • in a small bowl combine cornstarch and water, add to pan stirring, cook apples until soft and filling is thickened, let bubble 1 min

Syrup

  • In a medium saucepan, combine sugars, syrup, and butter.
  • Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a full boil, about 5-8 minutes.
  • Remove from heat and cool 5 minutes.
  • Stir in whipping cream
  • Stir in Red Dye

Brain

  • Preheat oven to 350
  • Spread the walnuts onto a baking sheet and sprinkle with some salt
  • cook for 8-10 mins, until golden, let cool

Doughnut Assembly

  • Roll out about 1/4 inch thick and cut into 3 inch rounds
  • Get half of the circles damp with some water around the edges
  • fill HALF of the circles with about 1 Tbsp of apple filling
  • top with the other half and press into place, re-cut to SEAL the edges
  • place on baking sheet and let rise 20 mins, about doubled in size
  • Preheat the oven to 400
  • Bake doughnuts for 5-8 mins

Glaze

  • Mix the powdered sugar, cinnamon, milk and vanilla

Assembly

  • Dip the warm doughnuts in the glaze
  • dip each walnut in the caramel sauce, and place on top of doughnuts
  • drizzle on more caramel “blood”

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 706kcal | Carbohydrates: 125g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 338mg | Potassium: 224mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 75g | Vitamin A: 670IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 73mg | Iron: 3mg
Did you make this recipe?Mention @ashleemariecakes or tag #makesomeawesome and I’ll share your image in my Instagram stories!
caramel apple pie filled donuts

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  • Homemade Apple Pie Donuts
    Homemade Apple Pie Donuts
  • Edible Bloody Broken Glass Red Velvet Cupcakes
    Edible Bloody Broken Glass Red Velvet Cupcakes

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With the right tips and tricks, I believe YOU can make, bake, or create anything. This is what I love to do - make some awesome, teach you how, and give you that boost of culinary confidence you need to rock your own kitchen! Read more...

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